Football Headline

JACKSONVILLE,
Fla. – The last time
Gators quarterback John Brantley played at EverBank Field – a 24-20 loss to
Georgia in late October – he could barely walk by the end of the game.

It was
Brantley’s first game back since suffering a severe high-ankle sprain in the
first half against Alabama on Oct. 1. The injury forced Brantley to miss two
games and spend much of October getting treatment on the ankle in hopes of
returning to finish out his senior year.

Brantley made
it back in time to face Georgia and threw for 226 yards in the first half – a
career-best for a half – before the ankle started to feel like an anchor tied
to his leg.

He enters
Monday’s Gator Bowl coming off a concussion that knocked him out of his final
game at The Swamp, a 21-7 loss to Florida State.

Brantley has
endured through all the injuries and the ups and downs that come with trying to
replace arguably the most popular player in Gator football history. In doing
so, Brantley gained respect from his coaches and teammates for not only his
toughness, but his character and the way he has handled a difficult senior
season.

With his
college career down to one final game, Brantley expects Monday to be emotional
afternoon. He remains upbeat about his time at Florida despite the injuries and
some difficult moments.

“I grew up as
a Gator, and now that I will be exiting this program after this game, I will
always be a Gator through thick and thin,’’ Brantley said. “I will always be
wearing orange and blue and watching them on Saturdays for years to come.

“I’m just
fortunate enough to be able to wake up every day and put on the Gator uniform.
To be able to have this opportunity to play major college football at such a
great university and one that I’ve loved my entire life was a dream come true
and I wouldn’t have it any other way.’’

Brantley said
he is 100 percent heading into Monday’s game. He joined fellow seniors Jeff Demps,
Chris Rainey, Jaye Howard and William Green alongside head coach Will Muschamp
on Saturday for Florida’s final Gator Bowl press conference.

Muschamp praised
the seniors on his first UF team for their contributions and leadership.

“Their senior
year didn’t go the way we wanted it to go. I’m disappointed about that, but
these guys have worked hard, they have been good leaders,’’ Muschamp said. “I’m
very proud of their accomplishments. I think they have led us in a first-class
manner through a difficult season.’’

The Gator
Bowl will be Brantley’s 41st career game with the Gators. He has completed 61.4
percent of his passes for 29 touchdowns, 17 interceptions and 4,618 yards.

“We’ve been
here for a while. We never thought this day would come, but it’s here,’’
Brantley said. “It has gone by fast.’’

SMOOTH
SAILING

Brantley
echoed what Muschamp and interim offensive coordinator Brian White have said
since the departure of Charlie Weis to Kansas.

The Gators’
offense under White is very similar to the one installed by Weis in his only
season.

“Not much at
all [has changed],’’ Brantley said. “We’re running the same exact offense. We
haven’t missed much at all. It’s been spot-on.’’

When a reporter
asked Demps and Rainey about trying to find more running room in the Gator Bowl
than the past few games, both sat quiet for several seconds.

“They don’t
want to give up the game plan,’’ Muschamp said.

“We’ve got a
couple of tricks up our sleeve,’’ Demps quipped.

TOUGH
APPROACH

A lot has
been said and written about Muschamp’s remarks about the Gators being soft following
the loss to Florida State. Over the past month, the Gators have turned up the
intensity at practice in preparation for Ohio State, considered one of the
country’s most physical programs.

Muschamp said
the Gators have made progress in that area that he wants to continue into
spring practice. Florida has spent a lot of time on fundamentals and improving
technique during its bowl practices.

“A lot of
that has to do with not having to get ready for a game in a game-week
situation,’’ Muschamp said. “Again, we’ve got to build our numbers back on both
lines of scrimmage. That’s what is going to help us the most.’’

One of the
things Muschamp is most interested in seeing in the Gator Bowl is how well the
Gators tackle.

“When you
haven’t tackled in a long time in a game-like situation, it is a little
different,’’ he said.

RIVALRY
FLASHBACK

The only time
the Gators have played Ohio State was for the 2006 national title. Florida won
41-14.

Rainey and
Demps were Florida recruits at that time and five years later are playing their
final college game against the Buckeyes.

“It was
exciting,’’ Rainey said of his memory of that game. “It made us want to get to
Florida faster. I know they are still upset about that game. We have to be
prepared.’’

Demps agreed.

“It’s kind of
like a rivalry now. We expect it to be a tough, hard game,’’ he said.

BONUS
POINTS

Rainey has of
way of saying funny things whether he means to or not.

He was asked
about what it was like to play for Muschamp in his first season at UF.